Abstract: The Noelle Bobbe George Collection consists of memorabilia collected by San Jose State College alumna Bobbe George (1950)
and her mother, Stella Onah Bunch-Hillis (1913). The collection includes normal school documents, teaching certificates, class
reunion literature, three-dimensional artifacts, textiles, and a family chronology. This collection is arranged into two series:
Series I: Stella Onah Bunch Memorabilia, 1913-1920; Series II: Noelle Bobbe George (Hillis) Memorabilia, 1864-2005.

Physical Location: Vault 1, Range 20A

Creator:
Noelle Roberta (Bobbe) Hillis George

Access

The collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

Copyright has been assigned to the San José State University Library Special Collections & Archives. All requests for permission
to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Special Collections. Permission for publication
is given on behalf of the SJSU Special Collections & Archives as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include
or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader. Copyright restrictions also apply
to digital reproductions of the original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational purposes.

Preferred Citation

Noelle Bobbe George Collection, MSS-2011-06-28, San José State University Library Special Collections & Archives.

Stella Onah Bunch-Hillis was born in 1892 in Paso Robles, California. She graduated from San Jose State Normal School in 1913
and soon entered the teaching profession. She worked as a grammar school teacher in Paso Robles from 1914 through 1917. She
married Harry Hillis and spent more than 30 years making a home in Buttonwillow, California. While raising her children, Wilmar
Hillis and Noelle Roberta Hillis (Bobbe), she ran the Kern County Library branch. In 1952, Harry Hillis retired from the General
Petroleum Company and the couple moved to Willow Glen in San Jose. Harry Hillis died in 1968. Stella Hillis retired from librarianship
at age 70, but she continued to volunteer at the Union School District, where her daughter Bobbe Hillis worked for a short
period of time. Stella Hillis died on August 17, 1994 and was survived by her two children, five grand-children, and nine
great-grand children. The Stella B. Hillis Scholarship in Library Science was established at San Jose State University, and
the Visiting Nurse Association Hospice Memorial Fund was established in her name as well.

Noelle Roberta (Bobbe) George (Hillis) was born in 1928 and grew up in Buttonwillow, California. She graduated from San Jose
State College in 1950, and was an active member of both Delta Phi Epsilon—a National Kindergarten-Primary organization, and
the National Social Sorority. She taught first and second grade at Union School in San Jose, California. She married Glen
George in 1954 and together they raised three children, and have six grand-children. Both she and her husband have been active
in community service, supporting Hope Rehabilitation Services and Packard Children’s Hospital. In addition, they are active
participants and supportive of SJSU programs in the Athletic Department, College of Business, and the School of Library and
Information Science. George most recently served as a committee member on the 50th reunion of the Class of 1950 in 2000.

Scope and Content of Collection

The Noelle Bobbe George Collection consists of memorabilia collected by San Jose State College alumna Bobbe George (1950)
and her mother, Stella Onah Bunch-Hillis (1913). The collection includes normal school documents, teaching certificates, class
reunion literature, three-dimensional artifacts, textiles, and a family chronology.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged into two series: Series I: Stella Onah Bunch Memorabilia, 1913-1920; Series II: Noelle Bobbe George
(Hillis) Memorabilia, 1864-2005.